30 States to Vie for Top Honours in Junior National Rugby

by Shrutee K/DNS

Mumbai, October 17: A total of 30 states (18 boys and 12 girls’ teams) will be participating in the “Societe Generale Junior (boys’ and girls’ under-18) National Rugby Sevens Championship 2016”, at the prestigious Bombay Gymkhana on October 20 & 21, 2016. The two-day event is being conducted by The Indian Rugby Football Union (IRFU) aka Rugby India, in association with Societe Generale and Rugby Association of Maharashtra (RAM).

The event is important for girls as it will be the basis for selecting the Indian Junior team to participate in the Asian Junior Under-18 Championship in Dubai later this year. Rugby India, would shortlist players for a National camp to pick the Indian Under-18 girl’s team which will play in the Asian Circuit.

The participating states include hosts Maharashtra, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Haryana, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Daman, Uttarakhand, Bihar and Jammu and Kashmir.

Nasser Hussain, General Manager, Rugby India told media persons at a Press Conference on Monday, the tournament has grown bigger as compared to the last edition which was held in Bhubaneswar. “I am pretty pleased with the response received for this tournament. As compared to the last edition (13 states in the boys competition and 8 in the girls event) this year there are 18 states playing in the boys’ category and 12 in the girl’s category, from various States including remote parts of the country.”

The increase in number of participation is due to the development of the sport in the country. The development is testament to the more states taking part and more girls’ participation. There will be over 400 players participating and 77 games conducted through the tournament. It’s going to be a busy, action-packed two days,” he further added.

The 18 boys’ teams have been divided into 6 groups of 3 teams each and will initially play on a league format with the top teams qualifying for the knockout round.

Last year’s winners West Bengal (boys) and Odisha (girls) are the top seeds in the tournament.

The Maharashtra team, both boys and girls, hope to better their performance from last year with a podium finish. The team representing Mataharastra has a good mix of experience, speed and zeal. The team comprises of players from various districts, Mumbai City, Mumbai Suburbs, Thane, Gondia, Satara and Kolhapur.